


roux

by evilstheater



Category: Mr. Driller (Video Games)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Gay, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, M/M, transgender headcanons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-26
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:35:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24931633
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evilstheater/pseuds/evilstheater
Summary: ataru deals with taizo, a young susumu, masuyo leaving, and the urge to leave tooa possible two parter, i dont know
Relationships: Ataru Hori/George
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter 1

Hell. The situation Ataru was in was absolute, utter, hell.

He didn’t remember when the last time he felt his dad gave a shit about him. Constantly leaving the home for days, sometimes weeks, leaving him to take care of Susumu. His mother had left a year prior, taking his newborn brother with him. Why she didn’t take them all was a surprise to the teen, who didn’t want to admit he wanted to be in his mom’s care at the moment. Taiyo stayed with Masuyo at all times, Susumu only wanted to stay with Taizo, while Ataru was the only one who went back and forth each week.

It’s not like he hated his parents. He was quite fond of his mother, who seemed to care more about him. Masuyo was kind and caring, but she was clearly stressed all the time and had a lot on her plate. Taizo, on the other hand, travelled the world with his money from the drilling incident of ‘82. Not to mention the pay he got from working with the Driller Association.

The few times Taizo was home, the atmosphere was tense. He tried to not show it around little Susumu, but it was clear the divorce devastated him. Ataru thought he did a good job of hiding it; throwing away all the beer bottles left in Taizo’s room, cleaning up the plates he left around, trying to duct tape the cracks of a broken relationship. In a way, Ataru wondered if this was how Masuyo felt all the time.

As much as he tried to hide it, he couldn’t keep every moment hidden from Susumu. Slammed doors, screaming matches in Taizo’s room, and the very rare times where Taizo was on an alcohol-fueled rampage. They had only happened a few times, but each time he locked himself in Susumu’s room, holding his little brother in his arms as Taizo screamed about how he regret having his sons, for without them Masuyo wouldn’t have left. He remembered the way Susumu cried in his arms, trembling, wondering why his role model would scream like this. He wondered if there would need be a time, where Ataru would have to strike first, to make sure his little brother would be okay. He prayed never.

Ataru knew that Taizo had it in him to be a good dad. In fact, he remembered looking up to him in the same naive way Susumu did. He was cool--he was Dig Dug! He was the son of Dig Dug! They never had to worry about money, but money was of no importance to Ataru. He had his little brother, he had his mother, and his amazing father. But how easy it is, for such wonderful times to be so fleeting.

He knew he couldn’t stay here forever. Another argument would send him to the psych ward.

* * *

  
“Got into a fight with Taizo again?”

Ataru stepped into a familiar house, one he had made himself acquainted with in the last few months. He looked over at his boyfriend, who was already putting out another plate for Ataru. George was thankful he didn’t come a moment later--they would’ve been eating dinner already.

“How’d you know?” Ataru scoffed, taking his coat off and putting it up on the rack. George was nothing but sweet to him in these moments, always allowing him to come in regardless of the time. Even his parents became family to the teen, who reminded him of an all-too familiar childhood. George chuckled, and sat down once he finished setting up Ataru a plate.

The grey-haired boy slipped his shoes off and into a pair of slippers, and sat down at the dining table. Everyone had started eating, so he didn’t have to worry about that. Moments like these, where everything felt normal, made Ataru feel emotions he wish he wasn’t feeling. This should have been his life, he felt. This should’ve been him right now, back at home, with mom and dad, and his two little brothers.

But he wouldn’t dare complain about his boyfriend.

Dinner was silent. George’s parents knew about Ataru’s situation. And for once, they never doubted him on anything. That was the worst part, Ataru felt, that he couldn’t tell anyone about what was doing on at home. The mighty Dig Dug wouldn’t dare be an alcoholic. The brave Dig Dug wouldn’t dare scream at his kids. But George and his parents believed Ataru fully, and always made it clear from the start that he was welcome at their home.

“Thanks for the meal,” Ataru mumbled, getting up to put his dishes away. One thing he liked about here is that George and his folks understood when this was going on. He was never forced to be cheery. He was allowed to be upset.

He walked up to George’s room, and laid back onto his bed.

* * *

“You don’t have to run away, Ataru.”

The moon was peeking through the cyborg’s curtains, barely lighting up the room. They laid in the dark, with George’s head on Ataru’s chest. Ataru noted that George did indeed feel like metal on some parts of his body, but he never gave it too much thought. It would have been disrespectful of him to bring up the accident.

Ataru didn’t like to think about the accident. He didn’t like remembering what George looked like all torn up.

He thought back on what his boyfriend said. He was right, he didn’t have to run away. He had a home here, but it didn’t feel right. Nothing felt right anymore. He was treated with such kindness, and he felt like he didn’t deserve it.

Ataru felt like he didn’t deserve a thing.

“I know,” he murmured, staring up at the ceiling. George had these pretty glow-in-the-dark stars he plastered all over his ceiling, and he found watching them to be relaxing. The glow was fading from them, but it was soft enough to shine down on them. George nuzzled his head under the crook of Ataru’s neck, breathing ever so soft to sync his breathing up with his boyfriend’s.

The driller always loved moments like these. They were so common, but yet it made time stop for what felt like an eternity. He never got positive touches at home, unless it was him hugging Susumu. He didn’t remember the last time Taizo even laid a hand on him. Thank goodness for that, he thought.

“You can live with me. We’d let you in. You can finish high school, and if you want you can get your license. I know you’re the top in our class, so please, think it ov-”

“You don’t need to offer me these things, George. It’s okay,” he said softly, putting a hand on his boyfriend’s back. What was once gentle breathing became hitched, and he felt a wetness on his neck. Ataru rubbed his boyfriend’s back, knowing full well of what was happening. Here he was, he thought, the cause of every problem again.

“I just don’t want you to be alone, Ataru,” George whimpered, trembling in his arms, “I don’t want you to suffer anymore.”

_ I don’t want you to suffer anymore. _

Ataru didn’t want to admit it, but hearing George say that struck a nerve in his mind. He felt like he deserved this, like every little bad thing was his fault. He wasn’t a good son, nor was he a good brother, and he always felt like he fell behind in his studies. But George could never see the mass amount of negativity Ataru could see. He could only see the positives, and wanted Ataru to see what he could see too.

The driller was good at not crying. Even now, when he wished to weep with his boyfriend, he couldn’t bring himself to cry. Instead, he brought the blanket over them both, and kept George close, not wanting to let him go for as long as he could.

He knew he’d wake up to a thousand missed calls from Taizo.

He didn’t care.


	2. ghost stories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i didn't intend for this to have a second chapter, but it does now, and i'd like to write a third
> 
> im finally writing a consistent story

Smoke puffed out of Ataru’s lips, the cigarette in his hand dragging against himself. Smoking was not a habit he was proud of, but it was a habit he picked up from Taizo. He wasn’t a frequent smoker, but it was enough for the smell to linger in his clothes. He sat on the stairs of George’s porch, watching the cars go by under the rising sun. Today would have been a school day, but he couldn’t bring himself to face his classmates at the moment.

Despite being a senior, he wanted nothing more than to drop out and to never come back.

Speaking of not coming back, Ataru’s phone was ringing. He knew who it was, and he wasn’t answering. He was lucky Taizo didn’t know where George lived, or else he would’ve driven to his house long ago. Ataru waited for the call to stop ringing, and he finally got a chance to check his phone. 30 new text messages. 13 missed calls. He took a moment to scroll through them, every last one from his father. All of them sent while the old man was drunk, he presumed.

\---

Taizo: You need to come home RIGHT NOW or else I am calling Masuyo!!! YOU ARE SO UNGRATEFUL  
I don’t get what I’m doing wrong here?  
You know I’m leaving early tomorrow Susumu needs you  
You are good for nothing,  
I RAISE YOU AND THIS IS WHAT I GET? FINE LEAVE THEN

(There was a brief pause between text messages.)

Taizo: Ataru I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to say those things. You know I love you and Susumu. I didnt want this to happen either. Please come home and talk about this with me. I love you  
Please I’m so sorry  
I want you to come back please you are my son I miss you.

(Yet another brief pause. Ataru felt sick to his stomach reading the texts.)

Taizo: Youre SO CRUEL TO ME!!!! ALLWAYS RUNNING OFF.TO GO HANG OUT WITH YOUR FRIENDS!! ARE YOU DOING DRUGS?  
I WILL HAVE YOU TESTED  
COME HOME RIGHT NOW!!!  
ME AND MASUYO ARE WORRIED FOR YOU!

(This time, this pause lasted for a few hours. In between this time, he noticed this is when his father spam called him.)

Taizo: Goodnight,  
Susumu is staying wioth Masuyo now because of you  
Illl be gone in the morning  
Your dead to me  
I love you, I take that back, Im sorry

\---

Ataru powered off his phone, finding that his stomach was twisted into knots. He knew none of this was his fault, he couldn’t control the downwards spiral, but he felt like it was. He wondered how life would have been if he was never born, if Susumu was the sole child, if his existence was what caused Taizo and Masuyo to divorce. He pondered what would happen if he killed himself, would his family be happier? What about George?

He didn’t notice it at first, but it started to rain. Tears traced his cheeks, landing onto his pajama pants. Then it became a downpour -- he gripped onto the railing of their porch and for once, let himself cry. It’s not like he could’ve controlled himself; years of pent up emotions came out, all provoked by a couple of texts.

“Are you okay out here, sweetheart?”

The rain trickled down as Ataru turned to face the voice speaking to him. It was none other than George, who looked concerned for the driller. He didn’t say a word, only shaking his head at his boyfriend. George sat down next to his boyfriend, wrapping an arm around him and giving his shoulder a delicate squeeze.

“It’s okay, I know,” George said, “I wouldn’t want to go back there, either.”

Ataru never had to say anything to his best friend anymore. They had been around each other for so long to the point that George knew exactly what was going on. Words were not needed -- a mutual understanding was enough. Ataru leaned into his embrace, noticing that George’s circuits sped up when he was touched. It was enough to calm the storm in Ataru’s mind, even for just a moment.

“Are you going to class today?” Ataru asked, reaching out for George’s hand. His boyfriend held it back.

“Not when you’re like this, no,” George replied. Ataru was thankful -- not only for it being a Friday, but for not having to stay at his house without his boyfriend here. His parents were nice and all… but it made him feel out of place.

He found that his tears weren’t pouring anymore, and found that he was in a comfortable silence for once. George’s mechanical organs whirred softly, but yet it was a comforting sound. In fact, Ataru found that his boyfriend was just comforting in general. He took a moment to squeeze his hand, which George squeezed back.  
They spent the next half hour watching the cars go by, and watching the people walk by their house. In a weird way, he found just existing to be a pleasure enough.

…for the moment, at least.


	3. moscow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> woooowoweeooeoeooeoeoooohhhh No<3

“Hey, do you need this washed?” George called out from the bathroom.

Ataru lifted his head up when he heard a familiar voice talking out to him. He had left a decent chunk of his clothes at George’s house--ones he felt like were gender affirming--mainly so that Taizo wouldn’t see. He noticed George was holding one of his binders, and found an odd sense of comfort that he was allowed to… exist.

Being transgender was confusing. But to Ataru, it was life.

“Yes, thank you,” he replied. Ataru felt like he was calming down from earlier, but still felt off. But how was he supposed to feel? The driller was one for overthinking, especially in situations like these. After a few more moments of idly sitting in the living room, he decided to check up on his boyfriend. 

George’s house wasn’t fancy. It was functional, and it was cozy, and that’s all that mattered. It was one floor with 3 rooms, and a singular bathroom. Ataru walked into George’s room, where his bag was already unpacked, as little as it was. George had a space motif all around, which was shown in the glow-in-the-dark stars on his ceiling, the walls painted a dark blue, and little figures of the leads in the USGF. Ataru noted a few posters on his wall, too; Wataru Hosi, his idol, was plastered all over the wall. A few posters from a familiar anime too, where cyborgs like him wore yellow scarves too.

Ataru wondered if that’s why George liked yellow so much. It was in all of his outfits, anyway.

He sat down at the small desk, and found that his sketchbook was already on top of the table. Art wasn’t something Ataru considered himself to be very good at, but it was a hobby of his. He turned the pages, looking at each doodle, each drawing, and found inspiration he didn’t knew he had. It always came to him like this, anyway--not drawing for weeks, and suddenly not being able to put a pencil down.

It started with a few pencil strokes, a bit of lead breaking off of his pencil, and a few swears muttered under his breath. He was working on a messy sketch, something he didn’t have the motivation to do for awhile, but he felt like something was coming together in his work. Not that he’d really know, anyway.

“Hey, just dropping this off, they’re clean.”

Ataru jumped in the chair when he heard a voice enter the room. It was George, but it startled him nonetheless. He looked up at the cyborg, who was placing down a hamper by their bed.

“What’s this?” he asked, which was met with Ataru trying to cover up his sketchbook.

“Nothing.” Ataru was very quick to answer, trying to hide whatever he was working on.  
“...You don’t have to be embarrassed honey, can I see?” he said, trying to look through Ataru’s arms.

The driller took a deep breath. He felt like his art was dumb, and he didn’t want anyone to see, but George would peek at it sooner or later. He moved away from the book, showing the sketch he was working on: his boyfriend, in a USGF outfit, He knew how bad George wanted to work in that industry, and Ataru imagined what he’d look like. George lifted up the sketchbook in his hands, staring down the drawing like his life depended on it.

“I… Is this me?” George inquired, not moving his eyes from the book.

“Um… yeah. It is,” Ataru responded, his face heating up.

There was another brief silence, and every bad thought that could come to the driller’s head did. Was his lining awful? Was it too messy? Too stupid? Too cheesy? His thoughts were loud, drowning out all the positives and what could be’s, until George set the book down. George looked at Ataru, taking a step forward, but not saying a word.

With a finger, he lifted up his chin, pressing a kiss onto Ataru’s lips. It was brief, fleeting, but that’s how he felt about all of the kisses he got. Ataru wanted more. He always wanted more. He could feel George’s smile against his lips, and it made the blank-faced driller curl his lips in response, too. When they pulled away, he got to see his boyfriend’s face--blushing, smiling, and all around perfect. There was not a more handsome man, he thought.

“Thank you… it was a beautiful drawing, Ataru,” George said tenderly, heading out of the room to do other chores. Ataru sat there alone, elbows on the table, head in his hands, trying to process the moment.

He knew he was deeply in love. His heart wouldn’t stop beating. His mind could only think of George. He was fine with this, he thought to himself. This was his life, and he was going to make the most of it. Especially with George there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so fun fact i name all of my chapters and fics based on the song im listening to at the moment. no consistency.
> 
> sorry for bastardizing taizo i love to imprint baybeee


	4. late spring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> short chapter but mr driller is making me go mad

Ataru awoke at a familiar desk.

Oh, right, he was still at George’s. Lifting his head off of the desk, he peeked down at the paper below him. As he started to wake up more, he noticed how dumb the sketch looked. He made a mental note to not draw when exhausted. Speaking of dumb, he reached out for his phone to turn it back on. He knew it was a dumb idea. He knew he’d probably have ten more texts from Taizo.

As it flashed to his home screen, there wasn’t a singular text, but a missing call instead.

It was from Masuyo.

Ataru stared at the notification for a second. It was from a few hours ago, when he went to turn off his phone. A text didn’t follow it, just one call. He noticed there wasn’t a voicemail to follow it, either. He pondered for a moment, and decided to act against the giant knot turning in his stomach. He pressed the call button, each ring making his heart race.

“Ataru?” a voice came through the phone.

“Mom,” he said. A sigh came through his speakers.

“Taizo already called me and told me what’s going on. Where are you?” she asked, seeming more concerned than anything.

Ataru paused. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to say where he was. Masuyo, unlike Taizo, knew where George was. She was aware of their relationship.

“...George’s. I’m at George’s house,” he spoke hesitantly. There was no response for a second.

“Ataru, Ataru…” Masuyo groaned,” ...I’m not going to tell Taizo. I’m not mad. Taizo is out in France right now, anyway. Susumu is at my house, so don’t worry about him. Listen honey, I know you don’t want to go back there--”

“I’m not,” he stated. If Taizo was out, and so was Susumu, he’d have the home to himself. He’d grab his belongings and leave. Once again, he was met with silence.

“You know he’s going to have cops looking for you,” Masuyo replied. She was right -- Ataru was still in school, and Taizo was his dad.

“He wouldn’t. He wants me gone, and you know he’s tried to kick me out before. He wouldn’t go through the effort,” he said so nonchalantly. Masuyo sighed through the phone again.

“You’re right. I’m not going to tell him where you are, but just… be careful. If you stay with me he’s going to raise hell. I can’t support you, Taiyo, and Susumu too. Just… stay safe where you are. Come visit me sometime, at least,” she said.

“I will,” he agreed.

“Okay… I love you, kiddo.”

“I love you too, mom.”

And as quickly as the call started, it ended. He stood in the room he was in, taking in the current situation. He wasn’t going back. For once, he wasn’t allowing himself to stay at George’s for a night, and then leave. He was leaving, and that was final. He blocked Taizo’s number, and set his phone down at the desk he fell asleep at. 

He walked over to the living room, where he saw George watching television with his family. 

“George?” he asked. He looked over to Ataru, along with his family.

“Yeah?” he said, in his cheerful, sing-song tone.

“Can you give me a ride to my house? I… I need to gather my belongings,” Ataru said nervously. George didn’t react at first, but as it set in, he had a dumb grin on his face.

He was finally home.


End file.
